


Havana

by cleopatra98



Category: K-pop, Red Velvet (K-pop Band), SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/M, Fluff, Oneshot, Red Velvet, Romance, Seventeen - Freeform, crackship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-09
Updated: 2019-01-09
Packaged: 2019-10-07 06:34:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,969
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17360825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cleopatra98/pseuds/cleopatra98
Summary: The only time Irene was convinced by her friend's persuasion to accompany her to their university's masquerade ball ends up with her and a mystery tall man in white dancing together to Havana. Not only that, the mystery man seems to be determined to find her when she's comfortable leading her quiet, uneventful life beforehand.





	Havana

**Author's Note:**

> This was inspired by Irene and Mingyu dancing to Havana when they MC-ed together for the SBS Super Concert in Taipei last year! This was also published in AFF under my account there with the same username.

_You’re doing this for Seulgi you’re doing this for Seulgi you’re doing this for Seulgi_

Those were the thoughts being chanted repeatedly in Irene’s head, as she found herself hovering awkwardly near the food table, her mouth munching on the jam tarts she’s been unconsciously shoving into her mouth one after another. She could sense eyes judging her, from her lone figure binge-eating the pastries to her attire.

It wasn’t her fault that when Seulgi forced her to come to her faculty’s annual ball event, she did not mention about the theme being 007: James Bond. So there was Irene looking like Mother Teresa with a pure white dress that ended below her knees paired with a red rose on her hair added on as an afterthought by Seulgi in desperation for her to match the theme. Oh and did she also mention it was also a masquerade ball, which is why she was wearing an itchy red lace mask covering the upper half of her face?

She looked around at all the glamorously-dressed girls and dapper suited boys taking selfies and posing for pictures to be posted on their social media accounts, no doubt. _Quite to the contrary, these Engineering kids have a lot more going on in their social lives as compared to me._ Irene deactivated her SNS accounts a few years back as it interfered with her studies and caused her to pay more for her increased usage of mobile data, and it was a choice she didn’t regret.

To address the elephant in the room, Irene was there because Seulgi needs strength to approach her crush, who, in her opinion, was the most beautiful man in the world.

“You’ve been raving about him for ages, and now you have the opportunity to meet him at this ball, you’re backing out?”

“It’ll be weird for me to go alone… And I’m fine admiring someone from afar!”

“Nonsense! Kang Seulgi, you’re going there by hook or by crook, and I’ll personally be there to make sure that happens!”

“You will? Thank you so much Irene!!!”

And only then did Irene realized what went out of her mouth and immediately regretted it. But there was no turning back as she saw the eyes of her roommate lighting up hopefully at her and she sighed. She was a homebody who found joy in watching re-runs of her favorite television shows (Sister’s Slam Dunk, anyone?) and doing housework after she’s done with her Psychology classes. She wasn’t usually like this though, as her high self school was

very involved with various extracurricular activities. However, by the end of it she felt very burned out and decided to take things slower. Her previous life might have looked better on paper, but she felt more content now.

At least her mission for the night was complete. Seulgi had approached the man she was enamored with a while ago after Irene forcefully shoved her into his direction and now they were dancing together to the currently playing music, Crush by Yuna featuring Usher. Irene had learnt previously from Seulgi that the guy was a year younger than them in her Engineering department that she bumped into as she was leaving a lecture. Looking at them from afar, Irene couldn’t help feeling amused at how well they matched, especially their distinct fox-like eyes.

Feeling satisfied, Irene took another sip out of her champagne class. Maybe it was the drinks, maybe it was the mask, but Irene felt a little more uninhibited that night. So when Havana started playing, her body unconsciously swayed to the sensual beat.

_No one knows me or will remember me anyway._

Right until she graduated high school, she actually went for dance classes where she learnt how to dance various kind of dances including contemporary, tap-dance, traditional Korean dance and salsa. However, as mentioned earlier, entering university made her quit a lot of things so that she could just focus on her studies. Ignoring other people's judging stares towards a lone female dancing to the song, Irene moved her body to the beat whilst remembering the various steps taught by her dance instructor back then.

_I'm actually having a good time._

She spun and accidentally stumbled, right into the arms of a brown-haired masked tall man in white who gave her a smile that showed off his canines. The eye contact that happened between them in a split second felt like an electric jolt to Irene as she quickly recollected herself and stepped away from him. The man looked down too, and cleared his throat before offering his hand.

“May I?”

Dazed, she put her hands into his warm ones and again, they stared at each other, this time non-fazing. As if it was the most natural thing in the world, they danced together. His arm have moved to her waist while her arm automatically held his shoulder. Their steps were synchronized to the beats of Havana. It feels like they have been practicing this forever when they only had just met.

Irene’s mind barely registered the fact that people are watching them in awe. They made a striking pair as both were wearing white with a hint of red; the flower in her hair and his loose necktie. The song ended too quickly for her liking but their hands still lingered over each other. He gave her a wide smile and again, Irene was entranced by the canines peeking through his lips, almost vampire-like.

“I hate to break you guys apart but I just remembered that I didn’t turn off the switch for the iron after ironing my dress and the room keys are with you.”

Detaching herself from the man, Irene turned around in alarm to Seulgi who just whispered her nightmare to her in a state of panic. She looked back to the man apologetically who was looking at them curiously with raised eyebrows but still with a polite smile.

“Thanks to you, tonight felt like a dream,” said Irene quickly before bowing to the man hastily and rushing out of the place together with Seulgi.

The man had barely opened his mouth and had his heart dropped at the disappearing sight of his dance partner. Truthfully, his heart was pounding the entire time they were dancing and he could feel the chemistry between them. He sighed and looked down. _I want to meet you again but it’s not possible because I don’t even know who you are_ _.._

“Dude, both you and Seulgi noona’s friend were like a match made in heaven,” said someone, slinging an arm across his shoulders.

He turned to see his raven-haired best friend, Wonwoo, sipping on a glass of champagne. Suddenly, an idea flashed across his mind.

“Hey, Wonwoo, I’m pretty sure you got to follow your dream girl’s SNS accounts after chatting and dancing with her just now. Do you think I can find my own dream girl by looking through her posts?”

* * *

 

“Hey Irene, you’ve gone viral on Instagram!”

Irene snatched the phone off Seulgi’s hand. She didn’t realize how close together they were actually while they were dancing, and she blushed a little seeing how intent the male’s gaze were on her even as a viewer. It seems like the guy was popular, considering that the comment section was filled with people tagging him with comments like “Mingyu found his soulmate!” and “You guys are even wearing matching outfits!” and one that made Irene almost choked on her water, “Invite us to your wedding!” It took Irene no time to click on the profile @min9yu_k and felt her heart reaching her throat. She knew he was handsome even beneath the mask but she didn’t expect him to be this good-looking.

“Hello, earth to Irene!” waved Seulgi in front of her. Irene shuddered and returned the phone back to her best friend as if she just held something poisonous.

“Thank god no one found out who I was,” muttered Irene in relief. She really was just wishing for a peaceful, quiet, university life, even if it meant going through it alone.

“Well…” started Seulgi in a guilty voice, her eyes not making contact with Irene.

“Well what? Please don’t tell me anymore bad news. I’ve had enough overwhelming things happening to me in the past 24 hours,” begged Irene.

“I might have posted that selfie we took together last night before leaving,” said Seulgi quietly.

“You what?? Let me see that post,” panicked Irene, her hands frantically grabbing Seulgi’s phone and clicking on her profile. And sure enough, her most recent post was of both of them blowing kisses to the camera. And out of all the comments praising Seulgi’s dress, one comment by @min9yu_k was written: “Do you mind introducing her to me?”

Well, at least he doesn’t know how I actually look like. But Seulgi must have read her thought because she changed the view of her Instagram profile to the gridline view showing multiple pictures at once and only then did Irene realize in horror at how many pictures of them together did her housemate post. As she clicked on those pictures one by one, her head feels lighter and lighter.

“This is her?”

“Omg Seulgi noona your friend is an angel”

“Doesn’t she have any SNS account?”

She was doomed.

* * *

“Yah, I miss eating lunch with you,” nudged Seulgi one day while she was doing her assignment on her desk on the other side of the room.

It cannot be helped. Seulgi was eating together with the guy she met from the ball, Wonwoo, and apparently he was also best friends with Mingyu. Irene only found out when after she was late from finishing her assignment to join Seulgi for lunch she halted to a stop to see her sitting across Wonwoo and Mingyu next to him, who was looking around expectantly as if searching for someone. He really was better looking in real life. Later on she had to make an excuse that she was having a stomachache to Seulgi as to why she was absent.

She didn’t know why she was avoiding him. It wasn’t like she wasn’t attracted to him either, she definitely was, but it had been a long time since any male showed interest towards her and she can’t help feeling rather anxious and embarrassed. Judging from his Instagram profile (she totally have not been stalking him through Seulgi’s account), he seemed almost too good for her what with him being super sociable and being involved in a lot of activities.

Thankfully, Irene had made Seulgi promise earlier to not reveal anything about herself so for now, she was only known as “Seulgi’s friend”. For some reason, the more she avoided him the more she spotted him in public. She was thankful that his towering figure made it easier for her to spot him from afar and walk the opposite way.

There was a close call one day though. Seulgi had texted her urgently from a class for a printed assignment she left in their room. Irene had a class to go to when Seulgi would finish with hers so she couldn’t possibly wait for her. In the end, Irene was told to pass it to Wonwoo at the campus Starbucks. Coming into the shop, she looked for the male with the fox-like eyes but instead got a mini heart attack to see a familiar brunette sitting, facing the opposite way.

Not seeing Wonwoo anywhere else and realizing that she will have to pass it to Mingyu anyway, she impulsively made a decision. Irene went to the ordering counter and ordered a caramel Frappuccino. When her name was asked, she looked back to the male who was using his phone and sighed, muttering back “Mingyu”. Then, she took a seat far from him where she could see him but not the other way round. _He really is good-looking_ , she thought as she observed him. When the waiter called out his name, he looked up from his phone with a furrowed eyebrows.

As the waiter repeatedly called out ‘Mingyu’ without anyone responding or going to take their drink, Mingyu’s face become more puzzled and he stood up unsurely. Irene giggled while watching his reaction. Cute. He began to walk uncertainly to take the drink and that’s when Irene rushed to put Seulgi’s assignment paper on his table next to his phone before she ran out the store.

When Irene confronted her roommate about it, she was genuinely apologetic and mentioned that Wonwoo had a stomachache and had Mingyu replace him without knowing Irene would be the one passing the paper.

“You can’t avoid him for long. If fate wants you to meet each other again, you won’t be able to escape it,” said Seulgi knowingly.

Irene rolled her eyes as she continued folding her ironed clothes.

“Anyway, it’s not like I haven’t noticed you listening and humming to Havana more than usual. Plus, you changed your ringtone to the song too” snickered Seulgi.

With pink cheeks, Irene threw a sock towards her roommate.

* * *

 

_Thank god it’s Friday_. Even so, she still went to the campus library to finish up with her assignment so that she can have her weekend free. Surprisingly the library was packed with students studying. She remembered that most other majors had their midterms coming along. _Lucky us in Psychology, we only have continuous assessments._ It’s been two weeks since that eventful night and she managed to not think about it with all the workload she has.

It was quite difficult to find an empty seat and only after trudging along the 3rd floor did she spot one. She looked at her surroundings discreetly as she took out her laptop from her bag. Next to her was a pink-haired girl looking like she was ready to burst into tears while reading her notes. Opposite her was someone with an oversized black hoodie sleeping, his/her face down on a notebook next to three empty cans of Red Bull.

She pulled out her earphones and began working on her assignment. Half an hour passed and she was pleased with her progress. Her work was interrupted with a tap on her shoulder from the girl next to her and she pulled out the earphone from her ears quickly to listen to what the frowning girl has to say.

“Your phone’s been ringing and it’s distracting,” huffed the girl grumpily before she stuffed her notes in her bag and left.

Irene realized alarmingly that Havana was playing from her phone to indicate that someone was calling her and it must’ve rang for a while as Camila Cabello’s sensual voice has began singing the opening lines of the song. She looked at the caller ID and saw that it was Seulgi before she picked it up hurriedly.

“I’m in the library!” whispered Irene.

“Oops, sorry. Just wanted to inform you I’ll be eating out tonight and will come home late,” replied Seulgi.

“Ok, bye Seulgi!” whispered Irene before she hung up the phone. _Ah, now the momentum in doing this assignment is gone I was so into it-_ thought Irene until she realized the person in front of her was awake, possibly from her ringing phone. She began to apologize, only to belatedly notice the person in front of her staring with surprised wide eyes was none other than Mingyu.  

She was so stunned she couldn’t move a muscle and stared back at him. He looked very tired with dark circles around his eyes, his bangs peeking out through his hoodie messy in a way that made Irene feel like wanting to ruffle it. Finally, he broke into a laugh with his hands covering his face.

“Out of all the times I’ve wanted to bump into you, you finding me in this unkempt state is the last thing I wanted ohmygod I’m so embarrassed right now.”

Irene have imagined and planned all the scenarios whereby she will directly tell him that she was not interested in becoming anything other than strangers but all of them seems to be wiped off her mind in that instant and she burst out in laughter with him. All she could think of is _why have I avoided him for so long?_

“Hi, nice to meet you! I’m Bae Joohyun but people call me Irene. I’m a second year Psychology student. Thanks for spamming Seulgi’s comments section. Also, I hope you enjoyed your free caramel Frappuccino the other day,” said Irene happily.

“Oh my god now I’m so embarrassed for my actions too I’m so sorry for seeming so desperate... Wait, wait, what, that drink was from you? How did you know it was my favorite flavor?” gushed Mingyu in amazement.

Irene shrugged and said, “Lucky guess?”

Mingyu’s smile seemed to reach his ears by now and he said, “It’s also a lucky thing indeed for your phone to ring when you’re in front of me. Is it too direct for me to ask you to add my number into your phone?”

Irene shook her head in amusement but handed him her phone anyway. She watched his constantly smiling face tapping in his number before he handed her back the phone, his face carefully watching her as if holding himself from laughing, his lips twitching.

“Try calling it.”

Irene looked at Mingyu’s amused face suspiciously before pressing the call button. Suddenly, a familiar beat began to play from Mingyu’s direction as he took out his phone. Irene’s eyes widened and she covered her shocked mouth as she realized what song he had for his ringtone tone. Mingyu burst into laughter at her expression and he was soon joined by Irene who was laughing in disbelief.

_Havana, oh_ _na-na. Half of my heart is in Havana, oh na-na_ _._

**Author's Note:**

> I had a lot of fun writing this! Hope you had a fun time reading this as well~


End file.
